Richmond, Virginia
The capital of Virginia, partly designed by Thomas Jefferson, was capital of the Confederacy during the Civil War, and today it tells that story without gloss, from the church where Patrick Henry demanded 'liberty or death' to the former slave markets of Shockoe Bottom. It is also a whitewater city, where you raft down rapids at the foot of the downtown towers, with a major art museum that is free all year round.
By PierrickLocal Guide ★8 · 14M+ views on Google MapsBy PierrickLocal Guide ★8 · 14M+ Maps views
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Richmond, Virginia · Photo K / Pexels
Things to do in Richmond, Virginia in 4 days
Day 1
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A museum in the Old Stone House, the city's oldest surviving house, with manuscripts, letters and first editions of the writer who grew up in Richmond, and an enchanted garden with two cats.
💡 The museum is closed on Mondays. Combine it with St. John's Church, 15 minutes' walk uphill towards Church Hill. Price: $12, about €10, per adult.
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A white wooden church of 1741 on Church Hill where Patrick Henry gave his 'liberty or death' speech in 1775, before Washington and Jefferson, with Edgar Allan Poe's mother buried in the churchyard.
💡 The interior is visited with a guide, from Thursday to Monday, on time slots bookable online up to 30 days ahead. Price: $12, about €10, from age 16, $9, about €8, for younger visitors. Re-enactments of the speech take place regularly, with the calendar online. Finish at Libby Hill Park, two streets away, for the view over the bend of the James.
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Designed in 1785 by Thomas Jefferson on the model of the Maison Carrée in Nîmes, the first public building in the New World shaped like a Roman temple, with Houdon's statue of Washington.
💡 Enter through the visitor centre at 1000 Bank Street and join a free guided tour, or visit on your own. Open Monday to Saturday from 8.30am to 5pm, Sunday from 1pm to 5pm; the Capitol Square grounds stay open from 6am to 9pm. Price: free.
Ron Cogswell / CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
Day 2
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Set in the ruins of the Tredegar Iron Works, which cast most of the Confederacy's cannon, a museum telling the Civil War through soldiers, freedom seekers, freed people, women and civilians.
💡 Open daily from 10am to 5pm. Join the guided tour of the Tredegar site and, at weekends, the musket firing demonstration. Price: up to $19, about €16, per adult; $10, about €9, ages 6 to 18; free under 6.
Adam Jones from Kelowna, BC, Canada / CC BY-SA 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)Learn moreMore
A 55-hectare garden cemetery of 1847 above the James River rapids, resting place of presidents Monroe and Tyler and of Jefferson Davis, with winding paths, Victorian tombs and great trees.
💡 Pick up the map at the entrance to locate the presidential graves. Open daily from 8am to 5pm, until 6pm during daylight saving time. The site is hilly, so wear good shoes. Price: free.
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An island in the James River below the downtown towers, reached by a suspension footbridge, a former Civil War prison camp now part of James River Park, with rapids, sunbathing rocks and bike trails.
💡 Do not swim when the river level is high, as the currents are dangerous and drownings are frequent. To run the rapids, go through a licensed outfitter. Price: free access.
Morgan Riley / CC BY 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
Day 3
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A 40-hectare Gilded Age estate above the James River, with a pink sandstone Victorian mansion, Italian and Japanese gardens, an arboretum, a farm and rescued Virginia wildlife.
💡 Start with the Japanese garden, at the bottom of the estate near the river, then climb towards the mansion and the Italian garden. Price: grounds free; mansion tour $12 or $15, about €10 or €13, depending on the option; nature centre ticketed.
Sdkb / CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
Day 4
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One of the country's great art museums, free 365 days a year, from ancient Egypt to contemporary art, with famous Fabergé eggs and Kehinde Wiley's Rumors of War at the entrance.
💡 The museum stays open until 9pm from Wednesday to Friday. Part of the collections is taken down during the expansion works: check the list of galleries on view on the website before coming. The covered car park costs $6, about €5, a day. Price: free, temporary exhibitions ticketed.
Sdkb / CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)"Book" (hotels) and "via GetYourGuide" (activities) are affiliate links (Booking, GetYourGuide). Prices, times and distances are approximate.
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Good to know before you go
🍽️ Must-try food
Burgers and barbecue
brisket and ribs cooked low and slow, done differently in every state.
Clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl
the classic lunch on the San Francisco waterfront.
Mexican food
tacos from a truck in Los Angeles, a Mission burrito in San Francisco.
Pancakes and weekend brunch
a national habit, generous to the point of excess.
Craft beer, and California wine from Napa and Sonoma.
Dishes to look for in the good places: Richmond, Virginia.
⚠️ Best avoided
- Tipping is not optional: add 15 to 20% in restaurants and bars.
- Prices on menus and in shops exclude sales tax, which is added at the till.
- Do not plan more than four or five hours of driving a day: the distances are larger than they look on the map.
- Never travel without health insurance. A night in hospital can cost thousands of dollars.
- In summer, do not hike down into the Grand Canyon in the heat of the day: the climb back out is where people get into trouble.
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The little details that make all the difference once you're there.
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